Saturday, May 28, 2011

Mix cold water and sugar very well and chill until ready to use. This step can be done ahead of time.

Wash limes thoroughly with soap, (you need the soap to get the wax and pesticides off of the limes because you’re using the WHOLE lime) Cut the ends off the limes and then cut each lime into 8ths.

Place 1/2 of the limes in your blender.

Add 1/2 of the sugar water, place the lid on your blender, and blend well. Place a fine-mesh strainer over a pitcher (the one you’ll serve the lemonade in) and pour the blended mixture through the strainer and into the pitcher. Use a spoon to press the rest of the liquid into the pitcher. Dump the pulp and stuff in the strainer into the trash. Repeat with remaining limes and sugar water. Add sweetened condensed milk. Serve immediately over lots of ice. This does not keep well, so don’t make this in advance.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

These were VERY good... and here is the kicker, I don't like coconut, but I loved these. Not overwhelmingly coconutty! I tried to find where I found this recipe and I can't find it anywhere, so whoever you are THANKS for sharing your recipe!

Coconut Chicken

2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 large eggs

1/4 cup coconut milk (optional)

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 cup panko bread crumbs

1 cup shredded coconut

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup vegetable oil, divided

1 cup sweet chili sauce

TOTAL

Cut off any extra fat globules from your chicken breasts. Cut each breast into 6 strips, diagonally to prevent the end strips from being really short.

Prepare your breading station by gathering three bowls. In the first bowl combine the flour and salt. In the second bowl, combine the eggs and coconut milk. Whisk together until well combined. In the third bowl, stir together the panko bread crumbs and shredded coconut.

Place 1/4 cup of vegetable oil in a large heavy duty skillet and heat over medium/high heat until it is just below smoking. You can test the heat by throwing in a little bit of flour. When it is hot enough, the flour will sizzle and create a lot of bubbles.

While the oil is heating, dredge the chicken strips. First, coat each strip in the flour and salt mixture. Then dip each into the eggs/coconut milk and finally coat each in panko and shredded coconut. I find it easiest to coat all of them in the flour then go back and then do the egg wash and panko/coconut for each before moving onto the next.

After breading the strips, the oil should be hot enough. Place about 6 strips in the pan at once. There should only be one layer in the pan and there should be about an inch between each strip. If you over crowd the pan it will get too cold and the strips will soak up a lot of oil instead of frying. Fry the strips for 2-3 minutes on each side or until they are golden brown and crispy. Place them on a plate with paper towel to drain and move on to the next batch. After a couple of batches you may need more oil so you can add the second 1/4 cup to the pan. Allow the oil to come up to temperature before frying the next batch (2-3 minutes). Because the strips are thin, they should be cooked through by the time both sides are browned. You can tell by the texture of the chicken; it should be stiff when pressed. If you cut your strips thicker, you will need to bake off the chicken after frying to make sure the insides are cooked through.

When all of the strips are done frying, serve immediately with sweet chili sauce to dip in. I found mine in the asian section at the grocery store (ours was Panda express kind)

In a medium bowl, stir together dry ingredients. In a small bowl, whisk together juice, gratings, yogurt, egg, and 4 Tbsp. of the melted butter. Stir into the flour mixture until just combined (batter will be quite thick).

Heat a griddle or large skillet over medium high heat until quite hot. Brush pan with some of the remaining melted butter and spread batter with a spoon onto pan in 3-inch pancakes. When pancakes bubble and are browned, flip and continue cooking until cooked through and browned on the second side. Brush pan with melted butter before each batch. Serve warm with maple syrup.

Monday, May 9, 2011

So here is the deal, my hubby LOVES shrimp, me not so much. But I saw a couple recipes out there for grilling shrimp and I thought I'd give it a try. I combined and changed a few recipes and came up with this. Now like I said I don't like shrimp, but I like these. Weird but true. They have this sweet taste, yet a little kick or spice and they aren't way fishy tasting. Try them, you won't be disappointed!

Mix all ingredients together to make marinade. Marinate the shrimp in marinade for as long as possible.. 24 hours preferably but at least 4 hours. Put shrimp on Skewers and place on the grill. Cook about 2-3 minutes on each side.. don't cook them too long.